James DeNoon Reymert
Encyclopedia
James DeNoon Reymert was an American newspaper editor, mine operator, lawyer and politician. He was a pioneer settler in Wisconsin Territory
, early elected official in the state of Wisconsin and founded the first Norwegian language
newspaper to be published in the United States.
, in the county of Vest-Agder
, Norway
. Several generations of his forefathers were in succession the pastors of the same church at the Søgne
Parish from 1636 to 1738. His father, Christen Reymert, had been a ship owner and merchant in Leith
, Scotland
and later a customs officer in Farsund. His mother, Jeanette Sinclair Denoon, had been born in Scotland. At age fifteen young Reymert left home to complete a course of study at a commercial college at Christiania
. Later he went to Scotland, where he entered the commercial house of John Mitchell and Company at Leith, spending four years there. He studied law and literature at Edinburgh
in the law offices of Murdoek and Spencer. He was under the guardianship of his uncle, the Reverend James Young, a Presbyterian minister.
in Wisconsin
. In 1847, James D. Reymert, Even Heg and Søren Bache agreed to start the Norwegian language newspaper Nordyset. Reymert continued to serve as editor the paper until 1850, when it was sold and was moved to Racine, Wisconsin
. In 1852, Reymert founded the village of Denoon on the shores of Lake DeNoon. The town was built around the first two-boiler sawmill
in America. The town prospered, but was abandoned following a cholera
epidemic
. Reynert was also credited with getting a plank road
built from Janesville
to Milwaukee.
Through an acquaintance with Stephen A. Douglas
, Reymert became a nominee for Congress in his district on the Democratic ticket. Reymert was elected a member of the second Wisconsin constitutional convention (1847–1848), a delegate to the second Wisconsin state constitutional convention (1847–1848), a member of the Wisconsin Legislature
, serving as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
from Racine County (1849), serving in Wisconsin State Senate
from Waukesha County (1854–1855), and, again serving in the Wisconsin State Assembly from Milwaukee County (1857). He also served as district attorney
, superintendent of schools, and served as vice-consul for Sweden
and Norway
. He was appointed receiver of the United States General Land Office
and disbursing agent for the northwestern states as well as variety of other public positions. Reymert held public office until 1860.
In 1861, Reymert opened a law office in New York City
and shortly afterward organized Hercules Mutual Life Assurance Society. Because of failing health in 1873, he relocated for a time to a farm on the Bio-Bio River
near Mulchen, Chile. He returned to the United States, arriving in San Francisco in 1876. He had been contacted by former Wisconsin governor, Coles Bashford
who had been appointed to political office in the Arizona Territory
. Reymert subsequently relocated to Pinal County. Here he organized the Reymert Silver Mines, built a mining
and smelting
operation and established the mining towns of Denoon and Reymert, Arizona
. Reymert published the weekly Pinal Drill, and at the same time he was also practiced law. James Denoon Reymert died in the spring of 1896 in Alhambra, California
.
. The communities were approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) apart and located eighteen miles (29 km) northeast of Florence, Arizona
. Lake Denoon is located at the boundary between Racine, and Waukesha
Counties in Wisconsin. Denoon Park is 53 acres (214,483.6 m²) community park located in the southwestern portion of the city of Muskego, Wisconsin
on the northwestern shore of Lake Denoon.
Wisconsin Territory
The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin...
, early elected official in the state of Wisconsin and founded the first Norwegian language
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
newspaper to be published in the United States.
Background
Reymert was born in FarsundFarsund
is a town and municipality in the county of Vest-Agder, Norway.The town of Farsund was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 , although already recognized as a trading center in 1795...
, in the county of Vest-Agder
Vest-Agder
In the 16th century, Dutch merchant vessels began to visit ports in southern Norway to purchase salmon and other goods. Soon thereafter the export of timber began, as oak from southern Norway was exceptionally well suited for shipbuilding...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. Several generations of his forefathers were in succession the pastors of the same church at the Søgne
Søgne
Søgne is a municipality in Vest-Agder county, Norway. Søgne was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Greipstad was separated from Søgne on 1 July 1913....
Parish from 1636 to 1738. His father, Christen Reymert, had been a ship owner and merchant in Leith
Leith
-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and later a customs officer in Farsund. His mother, Jeanette Sinclair Denoon, had been born in Scotland. At age fifteen young Reymert left home to complete a course of study at a commercial college at Christiania
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. Later he went to Scotland, where he entered the commercial house of John Mitchell and Company at Leith, spending four years there. He studied law and literature at Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
in the law offices of Murdoek and Spencer. He was under the guardianship of his uncle, the Reverend James Young, a Presbyterian minister.
Career
Reymert migrated to the United States during 1842 and in 1844 he married fellow Norwegian immigrant Anna Caspara Hensen. They settled down in the Muskego SettlementMuskego Settlement
The Muskego Settlement was one of the first Norwegian American settlements in the United States. Situated near today's Muskego, Wisconsin, the Muskego Settlement covered areas within what is now the town of Norway, Wisconsin.-History:...
in Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. In 1847, James D. Reymert, Even Heg and Søren Bache agreed to start the Norwegian language newspaper Nordyset. Reymert continued to serve as editor the paper until 1850, when it was sold and was moved to Racine, Wisconsin
Racine, Wisconsin
Racine is a city in and the county seat of Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. According to 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city had a population of 82,196...
. In 1852, Reymert founded the village of Denoon on the shores of Lake DeNoon. The town was built around the first two-boiler sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
in America. The town prospered, but was abandoned following a cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
epidemic
Epidemic
In epidemiology, an epidemic , occurs when new cases of a certain disease, in a given human population, and during a given period, substantially exceed what is expected based on recent experience...
. Reynert was also credited with getting a plank road
Plank road
A plank road or puncheon is a dirt path or road covered with a series of planks, similar to the wooden sidewalks one would see in a Western movie. Plank roads were very popular in Ontario, the U.S. Northeast and U.S. Midwest in the first half of the 19th century...
built from Janesville
Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...
to Milwaukee.
Through an acquaintance with Stephen A. Douglas
Stephen A. Douglas
Stephen Arnold Douglas was an American politician from the western state of Illinois, and was the Northern Democratic Party nominee for President in 1860. He lost to the Republican Party's candidate, Abraham Lincoln, whom he had defeated two years earlier in a Senate contest following a famed...
, Reymert became a nominee for Congress in his district on the Democratic ticket. Reymert was elected a member of the second Wisconsin constitutional convention (1847–1848), a delegate to the second Wisconsin state constitutional convention (1847–1848), a member of the Wisconsin Legislature
Wisconsin Legislature
The Wisconsin Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house Wisconsin Senate and the lower Wisconsin Assembly...
, serving as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
Wisconsin State Assembly
The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin....
from Racine County (1849), serving in Wisconsin State Senate
Wisconsin State Senate
The Wisconsin Senate, the powers of which are modeled after those of the U.S. Senate, is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature, smaller than the Wisconsin State Assembly...
from Waukesha County (1854–1855), and, again serving in the Wisconsin State Assembly from Milwaukee County (1857). He also served as district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
, superintendent of schools, and served as vice-consul for Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. He was appointed receiver of the United States General Land Office
General Land Office
The General Land Office was an independent agency of the United States government responsible for public domain lands in the United States. It was created in 1812 to take over functions previously conducted by the United States Department of the Treasury...
and disbursing agent for the northwestern states as well as variety of other public positions. Reymert held public office until 1860.
In 1861, Reymert opened a law office in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and shortly afterward organized Hercules Mutual Life Assurance Society. Because of failing health in 1873, he relocated for a time to a farm on the Bio-Bio River
Bío-Bío River
The Biobío River is the second largest river in Chile. It originates from Icalma and Galletué lakes in the Andes and flows 380 km to the Gulf of Arauco on the Pacific Ocean....
near Mulchen, Chile. He returned to the United States, arriving in San Francisco in 1876. He had been contacted by former Wisconsin governor, Coles Bashford
Coles Bashford
Coles Bashford was an American lawyer and politician who became the fifth Governor of Wisconsin. His one term as governor ended in a bribery scandal that forced him to leave the state, but he was later instrumental in the government of the newly formed Arizona Territory.-Early life and...
who had been appointed to political office in the Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
. Reymert subsequently relocated to Pinal County. Here he organized the Reymert Silver Mines, built a mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
and smelting
Smelting
Smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy; its main use is to produce a metal from its ore. This includes iron extraction from iron ore, and copper extraction and other base metals from their ores...
operation and established the mining towns of Denoon and Reymert, Arizona
Reymert, Arizona
Reymert is a ghost town in Pinal County, Arizona.Reymert was originally established around a post office that began operation on June 6, 1890. Reymert was named after its founder, James DeNoon Reymart, who also founded the adjacent milling and smelting town of Denoon...
. Reymert published the weekly Pinal Drill, and at the same time he was also practiced law. James Denoon Reymert died in the spring of 1896 in Alhambra, California
Alhambra, California
Alhambra is a city located in the western San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County, California, United States, which is approximately eight miles from the Downtown Los Angeles civic center. As of the 2010 census, the population was 83,089, down from 85,804 at the 2000 census. The city's...
.
Legacy
Today, Denoon and Reymert are ghost towns in Pinal County, ArizonaPinal County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*72.4% White*4.6% Black*5.6% Native American*1.7% Asian*0.4% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.8% Two or more races*11.5% Other races*28.5% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
. The communities were approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) apart and located eighteen miles (29 km) northeast of Florence, Arizona
Florence, Arizona
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 17,054 people, 2,226 households, and 1,540 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,056.2 people per square mile . There were 3,216 housing units at an average density of 387.7 per square mile...
. Lake Denoon is located at the boundary between Racine, and Waukesha
Waukesha County, Wisconsin
Waukesha County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2008, the population was 380,629. Its county seat is Waukesha.-History:The part of Wisconsin that Waukesha County now occupies was a part of Michigan when Milwaukee County was organized in September 1834. On July 4, 1836, the...
Counties in Wisconsin. Denoon Park is 53 acres (214,483.6 m²) community park located in the southwestern portion of the city of Muskego, Wisconsin
Muskego, Wisconsin
Muskego is a city in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 21,397. Its 2006-2008 estimated population was 22,851. Muskego is the fifth largest community in Waukesha County. The name Muskego is derived from the Potawatomi Indian name for the...
on the northwestern shore of Lake Denoon.
Other Reading
- Blegen, TheodoreTheodore C. BlegenTheodore Christian Blegen was an American historian and author. Theodore Blegen was the author of numerous historic reference books, papers and articles written over a five decade period...
, Norwegian Migration to the United States (Norwegian- American Historical Association, Northfield, Minn., 1940) - Ronning, Nils NilsenNils Nilsen RonningNils Nilsen Ronning was an American author, journalist and editor.-Background:Nils Nilsen Ronning was born in Bø in Telemark, Norway. After he emigrated to America in 1887, he attended the Faribault public school...
The Saga of Old Muskego (Old Muskego Memorial. Waterford, Wisconsin, 1943)